The Top 11 Innovative Workplace Stories Of 2013

Do you like working from home? Do you like open offices? The debate raged this year about what makes workers happiest—and the best workers. Just be glad this scary rolling conference room isn't where you have your meetings.

This year was all about turning traditional office models on their head—and occasionally, bringing them back to basics. Chairigami made headlines for its office furniture made completely out of cardboard, no assembly required. Meanwhile, Seattle's Bullitt Center, dubbed the greenest office building the world, finally opened, and an office building in Tokyo began growing 200 species of fruit, rice and vegetables on its roof.

For many years, employers have championed the space-saving and cost-cutting open office, but we're finally starting to see backlash—and even research proving that people don't like them. Maybe telepresence is the way to go. Or maybe, as Yahoo seems to think, it's the exact wrong move.

In the end, it's clear that employers have a lot of work to do in creating comfortable work environments for their employees. Read on to hear how.

The Bullitt Center is made from totally clean materials, has composting toilets, and catches enough rainwater to survive a 100-day drought. And it’s 100% solar-powered, in a city not known for its sunny days.

Ariel Schwartz is a Senior Editor at Co.Exist. She has contributed to SF Weekly, Popular Science, Inhabitat, Greenbiz, NBC Bay Area, GOOD Magazine and more. For story ideas: ariel[at]fastcompany.com Continued